Mexican food in Singapore and a jazz fest in Copenhagen, Teabox founder’s wish list for life post-COVID

Kausshal Dugarr, founder of Teabox, an online source for premium teas, is in the business of a brew which is often defined as the cup that cheers or soothes. In this interaction, Dugarr speaks of what he would do if the air was free of the spectre of COVID.

Akshay Sawai

October 23, 2020 / 15:21 IST

Note to readers: While we accept the reality of the coronavirus, it is important to be optimistic. We must believe that there will be a day when the disease will no longer be the all-destroying scourge it is today. And when that day comes, we will be able to enjoy life, maybe with a few adjustments, the way we did before COVID-19. To that end, we are starting ‘If Covid Vanished ...’, a series of interviews with corporate heads and achievers, where we ask them where they’d like to travel or eat, who’d they like to meet, and so on, if the world became Corona-mukt. Follow the series here.

Kausshal Dugarr, founder, Teabox, an online source for premium teas, is in the business of a brew which is often defined as the cup that cheers or soothes. A dose of happiness or relaxation is something the world can certainly do with in times of a depressing pandemic. But while tea would help, what would really do the trick is if COVID-19 went away or became manageable.

In this interaction, Dugarr speaks of what he would do if the air was free of the spectre of COVID.

If Covid vanished tomorrow or became easily manageable, which city would you like to travel to first and why?

Singapore. It's been my second home since my college graduation. (Dugarr studied at Singapore Management University, Lee Kong Chian School of Business.)

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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